Sponsorship Opportunities

Click here to see the full list of Chelmsford HC Sponsorship Opportunities.

Chelmsford Hockey Club has been fortunate enough to enjoy good financial backing over the years, the foundation of which has been a solid base of membership. Through annual subscriptions, match fees, fund-raising, social events and individual donations, the Club enjoys an excellent revenue stream with which to manage the ongoing costs of running such a large and diverse organisation.

Even so, it would have been nigh on impossible for the Club to develop as successfully as it has done, particularly during the last ten years or so. Mention has already been made of the strong backing of Chelmsford Borough Council over three decades and, more recently, Sport England. Without these infusions of expert advice, close support and capital at times when the whole concept of hockey was undergoing changes, the essential infrastructure just would not have materialised. However, such development, aligned with success on the field of play, also has the consequence of increasing recurrent costs, such as maintenance or travel and accommodation expenses.

To fill this gap, Chelmsford Hockey Club has sought sponsorship from various sources and at various levels. In truth, this has tended to be done on an ad hoc basis which, although very welcome, creates an uncertainty in cash flow terms. When managing what is now almost becoming a business (even if all the Club’s officers are unpaid), this is clearly not an optimal state of affairs and this brochure is designed to address the situation in a more structured and clear-cut manner.

Specific opportunities

The following pages lay out the varied levels of sponsorship that are available to cover the individual or small company sponsor to the largest corporation. Taking the latter first, the Overall Club Sponsor would enjoy a substantial package of benefits, made up of the components illustrated more fully in subsequent sections.

First and foremost, the Club Sponsor’s name and/or logo will appear on the front of the shirts of both Ladies and Men’s 1st XI’s, as well on the players’ post-match casual wear. Considering that both teams travel the length and breadth of the country, while the Ladies Squad participated in two European Championships in 2005, this significant sponsorship exposure is often in the presence of local, regional and national press and, from time to time, the electronic media.

However, the package contains much more than this, giving the sponsor opportunity, for example, to leverage the relationship with Chelmsford Hockey Club by organising a Sponsor’s Day, where the organisation’s management and clients can enjoy a buffet lunch prior to one of the several national league or cup matches that take place at Chelmer Park each season and rub shoulders with the players (many of them current or former internationals) during tea after the match.

A recent and valuable development has been an agreement with our long term media partner, the Essex Chronicle, whereby the logos and contact information of the Club’s sponsors appears every week throughout the season in a banner advertisement at the foot of the Hockey reports page in the Sports Section of the paper.

Moving down the scale, there is opportunity to sponsor one or other of the 1st XI’s. Depending on the scale of sponsorship, the company logo will appear on the front or one sleeve of the players’ shirts, along with an array of other benefits. Other teams or groups may be sponsored, in particular the thriving Youth section, which has nearly as large a membership as the adult club.

Similarly, events such as junior and senior competitions, which involve many other clubs coming to Chelmer Park for a day or for the weekend, would benefit greatly from extra funding. In like fashion, a sponsor may choose to host a lunch on one of EHL match days, using the occasion as a platform for corporate entertainment.

Straightforward advertising is another well-used method of sponsorship, whether it comes in the form of pitch-side hoardings, on the Club Web site, match day programmes, the annual fixture card, match balls and so on. In short, everything is available to suit the requirements of everyone, from the personal donor to the largest corporate sponsor.

You can download a full 26 page document containing all of the sponsorship opportunities, by clicking here (1.7Mb Word document).

If you are a prospective sponsor, or know of an individual or organisation that may be interested in becoming a sponsor of Chelmsford Hockey Club, please Email the sponsorship secretary (details on the Contacts and Officals page.